Why Is God Not Answering My Prayers?

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What Are You Doing Wrong, If God Is Not Answering Your Prayers?

I am sure you must have heard this questioning a million times and I am super excited to share with you today the probable causes of your unanswered prayers. Furthermore, you need to understand that your Heavenly Father is not deaf, neither is He a wicked God. He means whatever He says, and says whatever He means.

Isaiah 55:11 “So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.”
If God is faithful, then we must be doing something wrong and thank God, Jesus Christ showed us how to pray. Before you roll your eyes, let me clarify something here, Jesus did not admonish us to pray word for word, He only showed us the way to pray, a method in which to pray to our heavenly Father.

Matthew 6:9-13 “9 After this manner, therefore, pray ye:

Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. 10 Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.
11 Give us this day our daily bread.
12 And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.
13 And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen.

Steps of an effective prayer. Jesus Christ showed us in Matthew 6:9-13 how to approach God when we need something from Him.

Step one – Acknowledgement
In verse 9 of Matthew chapter 6, Jesus Christ talks about acknowledging the Father. You need to show Him his position in your life.
Malachi 1:6 “A son honoureth his father, and a servant his master: if then I be a father, where is mine honor? And if I be a master, where is my fear? Saith the Lord of hosts unto you, O priests, that despise my name. And ye say, Wherein have we despised thy name?”

Step two – Pray for His kingdom
This refers to the lost sheep, pray for the unsaved. Praying a selfless prayer is the fastest way to get the attention of God. Now I’m not saying you should pretend to care for your next door neighbor, but pray a heartfelt prayer for people around you. Pray for God’s will to be established.

Step three – Ask
After acknowledging Him as your Father, as the Lord of lords, the King of kings, then pray for the lost sheep, pray for what you need from Him.

Step four – Forgiveness
Romans 3:23 “for all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God” we will be lying if we think we’ve not sinned. To ask for God’s mercies, ensure you’ve dealt mercifully to your neighbor. Do not be like the unmerciful servant in Matthew 18:21-35.

Step five – Direction
In verse 13, Jesus admonishes us to ask for direction. We need divine direction to overcome every challenge of life. He is omnipresent, He sees the end from the beginning, so He is the best Person to ask for guidance.

Step six – Thanksgiving
Every prayer, no matter how short or long, how serious or not, should always end in thanksgiving. Thanksgiving brings quick answers, it is a proof that you believe God will do it and you are thanking Him in advance.

Reasons why God does not answer
Now we have learned how to approach God in prayers, let us see what we’ve been doing wrong that has made our request to be unanswered.

Wrong motives
Here is what scripture says James 4:2 “You desire but do not have, so you kill. You covet but you cannot get what you want, so you quarrel and fight. You do not have because you do not ask God.”
The New International Version explained it better, “When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.” What are the reasons you need a new house, new car, marriage? Is it to spite your neighbor? Is it to prove a point? These are the things we need to put into consideration before we go before God in prayers. Remember, He sees our deepest thoughts.

Anxiety
When you are anxious about something even after prayers, it shows you do not trust God enough to give you your desires. John 15:7 “If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you.” you have no reason to be anxious because He cares for you. Philippians 4:6-7 “Be careful for nothing; but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.

7 And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” Mark 11:24 ““Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.”

Double-minded
James 1:7 “For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord.” God is not looking for an unwavering man; He needs your total trust. Why ask God if you have other options? God will not respond to you if you have a backup plan. There is no need for you not to trust your heavenly Father.

1 John 5:14 “And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of him.”

Wrong thoughts
Psalm 66:18 “If I had cherished iniquity in my heart, the Lord would not have listened.”
Our thoughts have a great impact on our prayers, You cannot pray for Z, and your heart is zeroed on A, your thoughts, and the words of your mouth are equally powerful. They are to be in sync before your prayers can be answered.

Philippians 4:8 “Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of a good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.

Encourage Yourself:

The Holy Spirit, our Helper. Now that you know what you may be doing wrong on the altar, it is never too late to ask God again. If you do not know to go before the Lord, then ask the Holy Spirit. 1 John 5:14 “And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of him.” I love to pray God’s word back to Him, because He has to honor His word.